National Republican., 1887-02-04
MIR. GRADY ANDruENEw SOUTH
A Letter from Judge Charles ID. Drake
Protest Against the Charge of North
ern war-Hatred.
New York Tribune, Feb. 81


Protest Against the Charge of North
ern war-Hatred.
New York Tribune, Feb. 81
WASHINGTON, Jan. 26.-The following
letter was written soon after the New Eng
land Society dinner In New York by ex-
Chief Justice Charles d. Drake, Of the court
OF claims, and sent to Mr.. Grady for pub
lica.ion in his paper, the Atlanta Constitu.
ton Not having appeared In that journal,
1t is kindly furnished by Judge Drake for
publication In the Tribune:
Mr.. ii. w. GRADY: have read with uu-
usual interest and pleasure your powerful
and eloquent speech at the New England
dinner in New York, on the 22d instant,
and the pleasure would have been quite un
alloyed but for Its closing paragraph, which
! cannot induce myself to pass unnoticed,
for II is unjust. l do not say that you SO
meant II, but, all the same, IL Is unjust,
and the injustice ought not to be allowed to
20 unchallenged. After eloquently utter
ing your "message" for the "indissoluble
union Of American states and the imperlsh-
able brotherhood OF the American people,n
you go on In these words:
What answer has New England to this mes.
sage2 VIII she permit the prejudice of war to
remain In the hearts of the c0nquerorj when
u has died In the hearts of the conquered
VIII she transmit this prejudice to the next
generation that in hearts which never felt the
generous atdor of conflict II may perpctuate
itselR viii she withhold, save. In strained
courtesy, the hand which, straight from his
soldiers heart, Grant offered 70 Lee at Appo-
mattox? WIN she make. the vision of a re-
stored and happy people. which gathered
above the couch OF Your dying captain, filling
praise, and gloriiyiug hts path 10 the grave
VIII she make this vision, on which the last
sigh of his expiring soul breathed bcnedlc-
south, never ablect in asking for comradeship.
must accept with dignity It's refusal.
Mr.. Grady, 1t will hardly be disputed
that, though these questions were addressed
to New England, they were meant for the
entire north. And / feel sure of your
admitting that, taken as whole, they are
In effect an affirmation that the north
cherishes the 'prejudce Of war" to such an
extent that she withholds the hand of
"comradeship" from the south, aud would
"make the vision OF o restored aud happy
people cheat or delusion." And what
means that phrase, "preiudice Of war"
| 1t has no sensible meaning there-no
meaning in fit proportion to the idea
| estrangement, hostility, or, condeuslng the
| whole into one word, hatred; hatred
| bcgotten in and Of the war, and grimly
| surviving the lapse of nearly quarter Of a
| century since the war ceased to aillIct our
bleeding country. So interpreting its
meaning, protest, in the name of all that
| is manly and generous aud true against tn ,
trend and spirit OF those questions, as
deeply unjust to the north. Aud / say
with emphasis that in attributing to the
north, or any part of 1t, that hatred, they
are absolutely untrue. AS you have
never, believe, lived In the north, you
are, suppose, not aware of their untruth;
but, nevertheless, were every inhabitant OF
| the north questioned under oath to day, not
one man IN 500 could probably be found
| who cherishes toward the south any Sc nti.
ment Of hate. If am right in this opin.
ion, then 1t follows that while youynvoked
the "imperishable brotherhood of the
| American people," you almost blocked the
way to that brotherhood in the south by
enormously holding the north up before the
southern people as not only nursing war
hatred toward the south, but as intending
that the hatred shall not die out with the
present generation, but shall be trans
mitted to the next, and thence go on to
"perpetuate ITSELF"
And when you go further, Mr.. Grady,
and assert that the 1'prejudice of war' has
"died In the hearts OF the conquered" but
''remains in the hearts Of the conquerors,
you attribute to the north feeling akin to
| brutal, and assign the northern people q
position in the scale Of humanity only q
little above that OF the savage. Quite prob
ably the great mass of the northern people
will not notice the injustice you have done
them; but, beyond doubt, the south will see
and appreciate the skill with which you
invoked northern brotherhood, and In the
same breath bade the south remember that
that they had been conquered" )" and tha;
at this late day after the war their ''con
querors" hate them.
| Mr.. Grady, let us calmly reason together
for moment over this "prejudice Of war;
alias hatred-reason together like sensible
men and philosophers, honestly intending
to get at the truth. In the first place, mote
three things-that the war ended nearly
twenty-five years ago; that about two
thirdsof the people who lived during the wal
are now dead, and that the present genera
tion is mostly made up Of people who were
infants during the war or were born after
its close. In the second place, note that
about ono half OF the present generation ol
men In the north are members of the Dem
ocratic party, the ever.faithful ally Of the
south, and therefore not to be charged will
war-hatred Of the southern people. Hence
1t follows that your charge is wholly aimed
at the Republicans Of the north. Now,
ask you, Mr.. Grady, as thoughtfrl mar
and philosopher, why should north
ern Republicans, or any northern men
who were in manhood during the war, hate
| the conquered" sOuthp In all fairness
did you ever know of an actual instanc,
OF q "conqueror" hating the "conquered,'
and yet letting the conquered" go as free
and unscathed as the "conquerorP" Or
the contrary, is 1t not known to you and tc
linen that 1t is human nature for the
conquered" to hate the 'conqueror?'
Why, then, should you have closed YOU
noble speech with so unphilosophical, 81
improved, SO groundless, SO unfraternal a
charger
And further; on what ground can It h
said that the young men of to-day, WHIT
were children during the war, or were borr
afterward, are swayed by "prejudice O.
war" against the southP The only posi-
BILE ground fer that chargr, II It be made, Il
that they have been educated to it-hav,
actually had "the prejudice of war" agains
the south instilled into them through the
childhood and youth, and have come t,
manhood In full.blown hatred of peopl
among whom they have never passed aI
hour, and of whom they know next K
nothing. Mr.. Grady, are you willing Il
make such a charge as that? / doubt
The fact is, Mr. Grady, and you ought Il
know 1t II you do not, that Of the peopl
now living In the north, who were 10 year
old and upward when the war broke out
the great mass have ceased to think mucl
about the war, except as dark and blood,
"Reminiscences; and those born since the wa